Its core mission is to turn AI into a tangible battlefield advantage, accelerating the innovation cycle — from frontline data analysis to the introduction of new command tools and autonomous systems.
As Centre Director Danylo Tsvyok underlined in an interview with Channel 24, the practical application of AI must become Ukraine’s asymmetric edge in the war. “Our key task is to design and implement AI solutions in the defence sector to bring victory closer. This means several directions: battlefield solutions, AI for the internal needs of the Ministry and the wider defence ecosystem, as well as speeding up innovation cycles in related industries,” he noted.
Focus areas: Development, research, and data work
The Centre’s immediate activities will cover forecasting combat operations, advancing autonomous systems, creating new command tools, and building AI infrastructure.
“We are concentrating on three things: our own development, research, and applied implementation of AI — in combat conditions, internal processes, and R&D. A separate task will be shaping approaches to combat data: ensuring its quality, protection, standardisation, and use for training new systems,” Danylo Tsvyok explained, adding that this will allow Ukraine to scale real wartime experience.
Supported by the UK Government, “A1” will draw on Ukraine’s unique expertise — the deep domain knowledge of its military combined with the rapid growth of the national AI industry. Information processing will rely on open and legitimate defence-sector data, with strict adherence to security protocols.
Synergy with business: A unique testing environment
The Centre’s development strategy envisages close integration with engineers and businesses.
“The Centre will be as open as possible to partnerships, joint development, and pilot projects here in Ukraine. Because of the war, Ukraine has become a unique environment where solutions can be tested very quickly in real conditions,” Tsvyok concluded, inviting Ukrainian and international companies to join forces in this technological struggle.
Part of a wider transformation
The Defence AI Centre “A1” is the first in a network of technology excellence centres, each dedicated to a key domain of modern warfare — drones, artillery, electronic warfare, and more. The overarching goal is to secure Ukraine’s edge in the innovation cycle, where the speed of battlefield analysis and solution deployment is decisive for victory.
The creation of “A1” is part of a sweeping transformation of the Ukrainian Armed Forces into Europe’s most technologically advanced defence system. By consolidating the efforts of the state and business, the Centre will not only strengthen Ukraine’s resistance to aggression but also lay the foundations for future global security standards.